Staring unseeing at the bare hospital wall, Yukio thought of his brother, who risked his life and sanity to draw on his hellish power again and again to protect others. He thought of Shura, born knowing she had three short decades and choosing to spend her dwindling time teaching Rin. He thought of his students, all born into ancestral duties, willingly undertaking a mission that should have been reserved for adults to save Kamiki and an assumed traitor.

“But, not me. I’m so obsessed with myself that I can’t see anyone else!”

Ever since his first encounter with Todo Saburota, he had only been going through the motions of duty. He attended class. He fulfilled his missions. But, his mind was always on himself. On who and what he was.

“I can’t keep going like this! I need a broader vision!”

What else was there?

“Now, you’re free.”

Seeing Shura’s face in that moment and, later, caught in her sudden, honest hug, he had almost felt free himself. Like he had watching Shiemi take her first wobbling steps after the dekalp was exorcised.

A knock and the door opened a crack.

“Mr. Okumura?” A doctor Yukio recognized as one of the Order’s hospital contacts stepped inside. “How are you feeling this morning?”

Something clicked into place.

Yukio smiled. “Much better. Can you tell me who I might talk to if I wanted to enroll in one of the hospital’s student programs?”